Currently, horse industry organizations (HIOs) can either follow their own penalty protocol or abide by APHIS’ penalty structure. The proposed rule issued today would require HIOs to adopt the APHIS penalty structure as minimum standards. This action would ensure that the penalties applied by the 12 HIOs are more consistent.

In September 2010, USDA’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) found deficiencies in APHIS’ horse protection program. One of OIG’s recommendations was that APHIS develop and implement protocols to more consistently penalize individuals who have violated the Horse Protection Act. APHIS developed a minimum penalty protocol and is proposing a regulatory requirement to ensure all HIOs follow it.

Congress passed the Horse Protection Act in 1970 to eliminate the practice of soring by prohibiting the showing or selling of sored horses. Soring is a cruel and abusive practice used to accentuate a horse’s gait by irritating or blistering a horse’s forelegs. APHIS works actively with the horse industry to protect against such abuse and ensure that only sound and healthy horses participate in shows. The Agency’s ultimate goal is to end this inhumane practice completely.

This action is published in today’s May 27 Federal Register.

Consideration will be given to comments received on or before July 26, 2011. You may submit comments by either of the following methods:

Comments are posted on the Regulations.gov website and may also be reviewed at USDA, Room 1141, South Building, 14th St. and Independence Ave., SW., Washington, DC, between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. To facilitate entry into the comment reading room, please call (202) 690-2817.

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